Don't Drink the Water
by BananaLover3902
Summary: Len comes back from a hiking trip for cross country and starts to feel ill. His parents and teachers are worried that something might be really wrong. Rin, Len's sister, might just be the one most upset by the unfortunate event. She tries to make him as comfortable as possible while he's wracked with illness, at least until the doctor can find out what's causing him so much pain.
1. Screw the tea

It had been a little over a week since that hiking trip with the cross country team. Most everyone was settled back into their normal, somewhat lazy lives, free from poison ivy and scraped knees. Len was especially happy to be back; that last trip was really rough on him. He enjoyed nature, but with all the mosquitos and sweat and rashes, well...It makes nature a little less enjoyable.

Len stretched out on his bed that morning, having just woken up for school. He was earlier than he expected. Normally his mom had to drag him out of bed after three attempts to get him up. That morning, it was completely silent. No one else was awake.

Len felt a peculiar rumble in his stomach. He placed his hand on top of it and closed his eyes. Was it really worth it to get out of bed for food? He lied there for a while before finally deciding yes and standing up. Upon standing, he became dizzy. He had to steady himself for a moment by grabbing the edge of his bed and hunching over until the dizziness cleared.

"Weird…" he mumbled. He stood and made his way down the dark stairs of the house, carefully avoiding all of the creaky floorboards so that he wouldn't wake his sister, whom slept in the bed above his. Bunk beds, in case you were wondering. They were brother and sister, twins. Their parents felt that if they separated them by giving them separate rooms, they wouldn't be as happy. They needed each other to function. Which, in a way, was absolutely true. The twins relied on each other for everything; from answers to homework to cooking when their parents weren't home to a shoulder to cry on when things weren't going well. They were closer than ever. Len smiled at the thought of it and continued on down the dimly lit stairwell.

Upon reaching the bottom, he felt his stomach grumble again. Though this time, it was a bit more aggressive. He paused and put his hand on top of it again, unsettled for a moment.

"Alright, alright, I'll feed you," he mumbled under his breath. "Just chill out for two minutes, okay?" He carried on walking, but another uncomfortable gurgle slowed him down considerably. He walked with his arms around his abdomen and his head down. He wasn't so hungry anymore.

Len changed his route from the kitchen to the living room where he proceeded to lie down and curl up on the dark leather couch beside the large windows. He whimpered as another gurgle sent a shockwave of pain throughout his entire body. What was wrong?

He craned his neck to look at the clock and then let his head fall back down to rest on the couch with a plop. He groaned and closed his eyes. No wonder nobody was awake. And no wonder he woke up before someone came and got him. It was 2 am and his stomach forced him awake. It took his body a little while to process the discomfort it was in, but when he started feeling it, it immediately took its effects on him. Len wondered if he would tell anyone. He had used up one and a half days of his allowed two missed school days. He couldn't miss another day, or else he couldn't exempt an exam. He groaned loudly, verbally expressing his pain. He wanted to go back to sleep and not have to worry about school, but he just couldn't…

Len decided it was best to try and treat it with home remedies and hope it was gone by the time he needed to get up for school. He slowly moved his pale legs off the edge of the couch. The action of sitting up felt like knives piercing his abdomen. He grunted and held his stomach protectively. He felt truly awful…

He stood carefully and trudged into the kitchen where he heated up a bottle of water and made some green tea. He decided it was better to not add milk or sweetener to the tea this time and carried both back to his room. He reached the door, then froze. He inwardly groaned and set the cup down on the floor and carried the bottle with him back down the stairs and into the bathroom. He painfully rid his intestines of any partially digested food, all of which smelled wretched. It took him quite a while before he felt comfortable leaving. He glanced at the clock. Thirty minutes had passed. He sighed and gathered up the little strength he had to go back to the couch and lie down. Screw the tea...He wasn't thirsty anyway. Eating and drinking sounded like a terrible idea.

Len held the warm bottle of water over top of his distended abdomen, curling his body around it. He felt relaxed by the heat and closed his eyes. His stomach loosened up a bit and he was able to belch up some of the gas that plagued his intestines, though it was never enough to relieve him. Eventually, he fell asleep on the couch.


	2. Don't Tell Mom

"Hey."

Len groaned, turning over. The water bottle had lost its heat, so he didn't care when it wasn't on his stomach. He was surprised to find he actually felt a little better...Still bloated, still nauseous, and still feeling those gurgling swishes in his intestines, but it was much more bearable than the previous night.

"Hey." He felt someone poke his cheek. He furrowed his brows in annoyance and swatted the hand away. Someone giggled behind him. Len became curious and turned around, glancing back to see who was trying to bother him.

It was his sister, Rin. She stood hunched over top of him with her hands on her knees. She was garbed in comfortable, soft, yellow polkadot pajamas with small orange shaped buttons. Len thought the look was cute, but was too distracted by the pain to complement her.

"What do you want?" he mumbled. Rin couldn't quite understand him, so she plopped down next to him and put her feet up on the couch. She pulled him into her lap, resting his head on her legs. He objectified the sudden motion with an involuntary small whine of pain, but quickly shut himself up. He needed to go to school, he couldn't let anyone know he didn't feel good.

"What are you doing down here?" Rin asked. She stroked his hair as they talked, the feeling calming and lulling Len into a more relaxed state

"I came down to get something to drink," he said, then added, "but I was really tired and fell asleep on the couch." He grabbed the room temperature bottle of water. "See?" _Clever cover up_ , he thought. His satisfaction lasted but a moment, as a few seconds after saying that, he felt a warm, sour tasting saliva making its way into his mouth. His face grew pale and hot, and he panicked.

" _Please, no…"_ he thought. He quickly sat up and pressed his back against the couch, hoping to make it harder for the stomach acids to come up.

Rin raised her eyebrows. "You okay?" she uttered. He nodded quickly, trying to keep himself calm. Len knew that he wasn't going to be okay once the saliva filled his entire mouth. He swallowed it and felt a gag reflex, clamping his hand over his mouth. Rin widened her eyes and backed up a bit, trying to stay out of the way if he lost it. And lose it he did.

One more wretch and a flood of partially digested food and water came rushing between the cracks of his fingers and onto his lap and the couch. He hunched over from the ache in his belly and could do nothing but let it happen. More boughs of vomit pooled in front of the couch. Luckily his feet were tucked under his legs when he sat up. Otherwise he would have puked all over them.

He moaned uncomfortably and put his hand over his mouth. He held his stomach tightly with one arm as it rumbled and gurgled, making the experience all the more painful. He belched a sick burp and moaned again. He belched up more vomit and coughed, unable to get the taste of acid out of the back of his throat. It burned like fire. By the time he was finally done, his cheeks were stained with tears and he was shaking so bad his hand wouldn't stay over his mouth. He was appalled at the sight of the sticky, yellow vomit that covered his hand and legs. The mere look of it was enough to make him dry heave several times. He coughed and sputtered as his body tried to rid itself of something that wasn't there. He hated throwing up. He absolutely despised it. It made him feel so weak and tired and empty. He could hardly keep his head up when he was done.

Rin watched her baby brother get sick all over himself with sad eyes. She didn't want to touch him in case she made it worse. She should have gotten a trash can or something though...Too late for that now. She hated watching him in pain. He always looked so helpless...It wasn't the person she was used to seeing.

Rin slowly started rubbing his back while he dry heaved. She knew there was nothing left in his belly to get rid of, so she felt comfortable touching him. Len jumped at the sudden cold hand on his back, but then relaxed once he realized it was just his sister. She then stopped and made her way off the couch so that she could avoid the puddle of undigested food and liquid and stomach acid. She cupped her hand around his cheek and frowned as she saw tears falling from his eyes. He hiccuped, unable to control himself. His body just wouldn't comply with him that morning.

"I'm gonna go get Mom," she whispered. Len widened his eyes. "Don't worry, I'll be right back." She turned to leave and Len shook his head and tried to call out to her, get her to stop.

"Wait!" he tried shouting, but his voice was raspy and dry. The action of speaking made him burst into a coughing fit. The stomach acid was too much for his esophagus. Rin stopped walking and turned back to look at him. It hurt her to see him like this. Once his fit was over, he spoke again.

"Don't tell Mom," he whispered, his voice still raspy. Rin looked at him like he was crazy.

"You just puked your guts out, of course I'm telling Mom!" she exclaimed. Len frowned.

"Please don't," he begged. "If you tell Mom, she's gonna make me stay home, and I can't miss another day of school, I just can't. I need to exempt my exam for Geometry." Oh yeah, that's right...Len used up almost all of his days off for being eligible to exempt an exam. He was only allowed to miss two days. Rin frowned at the situation. But he was too sick to go to school.

Rin contemplated what she was going to do: Help her brother out with school, or make sure he got better. She sighed. She knew school would help in the long run. Besides, it's probably just the stomach flu. He'll be over it in a day or two.

"Okay fine," she said, closing her eyes. She immediately regretted her decision. Len smiled sadly and relaxed. He sat back and rested on the couch, too tired to hold his head up. Rin opened her eyes and watched him. She had no clue how he was gonna make it through the day. Stomach aches are the worst. Always when it's inconvenient for you.

Len felt a sudden shift in his stomach, causing immense pain. He gasped and cried out slightly, surprised by the sudden movement. He hunched over. Stretching out was not a pleasant feeling. His stomach gurgled loudly and protested whatever was giving him such grief down there. He held his stomach and mouth breathed. It hurt so bad…

He belched a few times. He realized that it made the pain lessen, and it also made his stomach feel less bloated. But even if he didn't want to burp, his body was forcing the air out itself. He didn't have to try. After a few more, he groaned and hunched over more. He was grossed out by the puddle of vomit all over him and gagged again. He wanted to change and take a bath. He didn't like this feeling.

"Ah, jeez..." said a very concerned voice. Len didn't have to look up to know that it was his sister speaking. She grabbed a few paper towels and a trash can and wiped his face and chin off. He looked at her miserably. She frowned at the sight of her baby brother in such pain and put her hand on his forehead. She sighed sadly.

"You're burning up," she said. She kissed his forehead, a touch that he didn't particularly mind at that point in time. He liked the affectionate touching whenever he didn't feel good.

"Let's get you upstairs to the bathroom to clean up," she said, nodding. "You're a mess." Len struggled to stand. His body was weak and he was tired. His mom helped him up, and led him upstairs. As they walked, Len glanced at the clock to see what time it was. It was only four in the morning. He hadn't slept long at all by the time Rin came downstairs and woke him up.

She led him into the bathroom and helped him take off his clothes and carefully placed them into a plastic shopping bag where they would be thrown away. They were too messy to be worth cleaning. Besides, they were just pajamas.

She helped Len into the bath, preferring to rinse him off before filling the tub up with warm water. The bath would really be more for him to relax in than to get clean in. She grabbed the detachable shower head and put it on the smoothest setting before turning on the warm water and holding it over his chest. Len had curled up with his knees to his chest. He wasn't comfortable showing his body. He used to be okay with her seeing when he was little, but now it was just awkward...Not that he didn't trust her to not tease him or anything like that. It was just weird.

"Lay down flat," she instructed. "I need to rinse you off." Len sighed and slowly lowered his legs, exposing himself. He did his best not to make eye contact with her as she moved the shower head over his body, washing away the gunk and stickiness from his vomit. Next, she grabbed a bar of soap from the drawer in the sink and began scrubbing his body. He immediately protested this and grabbed her wrist, telling her he was perfectly capable of doing it himself.

"Rin. Stop," he commanded. She sighed and turned off the water. She put her elbow on the edge of the tub and looked him in the eye.

"You need my help," she said. "I know you, Len. I've known you for fourteen years. Longer than you've known yourself." Len glared at her as she subtly mentioned the two minute difference between their births. Rin continued. "And I know that you get very weak when you're sick. It takes all your energy just to throw up." She paused, looking at the ground. Len stared at the bottom of the tub. Neither one of them wanted to look at each other.

"Let me wash you so you can rest and relax," she said. "I know you can do it yourself, but you're going to be more miserable if you waste your energy now. It isn't worth it." Len nodded slowly, begrudgingly allowing her to wash him. He knew she was right, though he wished she wasn't.

She turned the water back on and resumed washing him. He felt somewhat relaxed by her slow and steady strokes with the soap closely followed by the water. His head tipped back and he felt it bump against the wall behind him, kinda hard. He sat up and put his hand on the back of his head, contorting his face in pain as the hit registered in his mind.

"You okay?" she asked. Len looked at her, then nodded. She quickened the pace of her washing. "You seem pretty tired. Do you wanna soak in the tub for a while? Or do you wanna lie down in bed? I'll let you sleep in my bed with me." Len contemplated his decisions. They used to share a bed when they were really little. It was nice to have someone there to cuddle with at night. Not to mention warm.

He spoke in a raspy voice, then cleared his throat. "Can I have my pillow and a hot water bottle?" She nodded.

"Of course," she replied. He nodded and slowly lowered his head to rest on the wall, intentionally this time. She smiled at him and stroked his hair before turning the water off and putting the soap down.

"Bed time, dummy." She picked him up and dried him off, then put him in some clean pajamas. She let him lie down while she got his stuff. She decided that she would clean up the mess downstairs as well, before Mom woke up. She sighed when she looked at it, grabbing a bottle of stain remover from the sink cabinet. This would not be fun.


	3. I Need This Exam Waiver

After Rin was done cleaning the mess, she went back into the kitchen to get Len the things he asked for: a bottle of water and his pillow. His pillow was on the bottom bunk, so that was easier than the water. She went back upstairs to their room after she heated up the water. As Rin got Len the things he asked for, he began to drift off. He was really, really, _really_ tired. He groaned. He didn't feel good. He didn't even want to think about what school would be like in a few hours. He loosely wrapped his arms around his stomach and closed his eyes.

Rin grabbed his pillow, then watched as he lied in her bed. She probably should have slept with him in his bed. If he needed to rush to the bathroom again, he probably wouldn't make it in time going down that ladder. She stood on her tiptoes and peeked her head above the upper mattress.

"Hey Len?" she whispered. His eyes flickered open and he looked at her tiredly. He replied in a raspy voice, his words almost inaudible.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I think we should sleep on your bed tonight," she suggested. "It'll be easier to get to the bathroom." Len realized that and nodded. He frowned when he thought about having to get up and go down the ladder again. He sat up and slowly inched down the ladder. Rin put her hand on his back to support him. He paused at the bottom for a while. He felt incredibly sick…

"Rin, I think I'm gonna throw up again," he said. Rin knew he wouldn't.

"You don't have anything in your stomach to throw up," she said. "It's just a feeling. You'll be okay." Len nodded and lied down. The feeling in his stomach did not go away, however, and he sat up, dry heaving. Rin was right though. He didn't throw up.

Rin frowned and rubbed his back as he coughed and sputtered. She felt bad for him. He planned on going to school in the morning like that. Rin sighed and hugged him. Len didn't object. He leaned into the touch and closed his eyes.

"Can you go get me some pepto?" he whispered. Rin nodded and slowly let go. Len was surprised at the warmth she had. When she left, he was instantly cold and shivered. He waited patiently for her to return with the medicine. Rin tried to hurry so he wouldn't be alone for a long time. It took her a minute to locate the familiar pink bottle, and a few seconds more to run back upstairs. Len had lied down in that time of her absence. She poked him gently to get his attention. He groaned at the effort of sitting up to take the medicine. Rin gave him a spoonful of it, which seemed to only upset his stomach more and make him gag. His stomach rebelled against the foreign object and gurgled angrily. Rin frowned. It would be a rough day for him.

Len groaned audibly and laid back down. Rin pulled the blanket over him and crawled underneath, spooning him. She wrapped her arms around his middle and rested her chin on his shoulder. Len sighed and closed his eyes. He was tired, but his stomach hurt too much to sleep.

"Rin?" he asked quietly. She responded with a hm. "Can you play something on the laptop?" He usually fell asleep faster to noise or music, so they normally kept the fan on or had some video playing on the tv.

"Yeah," Rin replied, and got up to turn on the tv. The tv was hooked up to the laptop on the keyboard holder under the desk. It was basically a giant monitor. Rin wiggled the mouse to get it out of sleep mode and then clicked on a new tab. She searched up some random Markiplier videos, since they sometimes watched that on the weekends when they stayed up later. She figured he'd need a laugh tonight or else he'd be a grouch in the morning. She crawled back into bed and resumed the position she was in earlier. Len sighed again and tried to get comfortable. He felt his stomach churning and gurgling, the sensation quite unpleasant. He shuffled around a little to try and calm it, but ended up making it worse. He whimpered. Rin shushed him and rubbed his belly a little. It helped a little, but the ache in his muscles-the ache you get after throwing up because your body isn't used to using all of those muscles-were unaffected by her touch.

He couldn't believe the amount of pain he was in. Really, how did it even happen? He woke up feeling completely awful and he had no idea why. Had he eaten something earlier? He groaned again and turned over, facing his sister. He noticed their closeness and looked up into her eyes. Rin pouted when she saw the pained gleam in his eye, his furrowed brows, and the sweat beaded on his forehead. It wasn't hot in that room. He was sweating from the pain.

Without caring about the consequences, she kissed his forehead and held her lips there in hopes of comforting him. She could feel it burning under her skin, the fever taking its toll on his body. Len sighed at the cool feeling of her lips on his warm head. He nuzzled his nose into her neck, trying to get as close to her as possible.

"Rinny, my belly hurts," he mumbled, finally admitting it out loud to her. Rin rubbed his back and nodded.

"I know," she said soothingly. "I hate seeing you in so much pain." She squeezed him tightly. "Do you think maybe you got sick because of something you ate?" Len shrugged. He honestly didn't know.

"I don't know," he repeated his thoughts. "But I woke up in the middle of the night to get something to eat, and then my tummy started hurting really badly."

"Did anything make it feel better?" she asked.

"I got a hot water bottle and lied down on the couch," he answered. "It helped a little, but it still really hurts." Rin nodded again. She was really worried about her brother. She didn't know how serious this was, or if it was serious at all.

"Where in your belly does it hurt?"

Len put his hand over his middle. "It hurts everywhere, but it hurts the most right above my belly button…" Rin furrowed her brows in concern. Appendicitis is known for a pain in the lower right abdomen, but it usually starts out right above the navel, then gradually moves down to the lower right. Appendicitis can be fatal.

"Len, I think we should tell Mom you're sick," she said. She pulled away a little so she could look him in the eye. He frowned and gave her a sad look.

"Please don't, Rinny," he said. "I _need_ this exam waiver. Please, don't tell her. I'll be fine in the morning, it's okay." Rin gave him a worried look. He stared right back, pleading her with his eyes.

"Please don't…"

Rin looked away and sighed. She _really_ didn't want to let him go to school like that...But maybe he would be fine in the morning. Rin was conflicted.

"Okay," she said, looking him in the eye again. "If you've still got a bad fever in the morning and you're throwing up, I'm telling Mom. If not, then fine. You can go to school." Len frowned. He knew he wouldn't be better in the morning.

"Okay," he agreed. He would just find some way to fake it.


	4. He Was Going to Have a Bad Time

Eventually the twins had fallen asleep, as troublesome as it was. By morning, neither of them had the energy to get up when their mother called them. The night's events consisted of Len getting sick again and then spending half an hour in the bathroom. He also had a bit of belching issues throughout the night. No matter how hard he tried, he could never get _all_ of it out.

Rin sat up at the sound of her mother's call the second time, though she wanted to go back to sleep. She looked at Len. He hadn't even opened his eyes. She knew that he was awake though. Their mother was not the quiet type. Rin placed her hand over his forehead. She frowned. Still fairly warm. She sighed and poked him in the side. Shockingly, he cried out and recoiled sharply, drawing back away from her. She was so startled, she didn't even know what she did.

"Are you okay!?" she shouted. Len looked at her with wide eyes, his breathing heavy and choked.

"Don't do that!" he screamed. He glared at her as if she'd hurt him on purpose. Rin grew angry at him. It was an accident, jeez.

"Well sorry, I didn't know!" she huffed and stood up, starting to get ready for school. She had completely forgotten about telling Mom that he wasn't feeling well enough to go to school. She was too blinded by her anger.

Rin was ready in twenty minutes. She grabbed an apple from the fridge and made her way out the door, preferring to walk alone that day. Len was still lying in bed by the time she left. He willed himself to get up, but his body wouldn't comply. He hurt so much….

Their mom walked into their room and saw him lying there, then yelled at him that he would be late and had no time to walk. She yanked him out of bed, put his books in the car, and waited impatiently for him to get his clothes on. He tried his best to hurry, but still ended up taking too long for his mom to be okay with it. He was grateful for the ride to school though. Even if he was yelled at half of the way there.

First period was awful. No other way to put it. Len nearly fell asleep during the lecture, but he had a gnawing pain in his abdomen that kept him from completely falling asleep. He moaned in the middle of class, which gathered everyone's attention on him. The teacher noticed him lying face down on the desk and paused in her lesson.

"Len," she said. "Are you alright?"

He couldn't answer. She walked over to his desk and put her hand on it, allowing her body weight to shift to it and she leaned over him.

"Len, is everything alright?" she repeated. Len sighed, opening his eyes despite his view being blocked by his arms.

"No…" he mumbled. His stomach gurgled painfully and he bit his bottom lip to keep from moaning again. He already had enough unwanted attention. It was embarrassing to have the whole class staring at him.

The teacher furrowed her brows in concern. "What's wrong?" Len let out a shaky breath, taking his time to compose himself a little before speaking.

"I don't feel good…" His voice wavered and he sounded like he was about to cry. He wanted to kick himself. How embarrassing…

The teacher frowned and brushed her bangs out of her face. "Do you want to go lie down in the nurse's office for a while?" she asked, making her voice softer just in case he had a headache. Len tried to shake his head, but his current position made it rather difficult. He breathed out a shaky "no" and proceeded to explain rather slowly why.

"I need to exempt an exam in geometry…" he began, his voice all over the place. He swallowed hard, nausea creeping up his throat. "I can't be absent more than two days…I've already missed one and a half. I need to be at school today…" He paused several times to swallow down the vomit that threatened to come up again.

The teacher put her hand on his back and rubbed slow circles into it, trying to offer some comfort to her obviously hurting student.

"They don't count you absent if you're in the nurse's office," she told him. "You're still at school." Len sniffed and closed his eyes, allowing his hair to fall over his arms. He hadn't styled his bangs that morning, opting for a simple low ponytail instead. He was too tired to do the full look. The loose locks rested lightly over his sweater sleeves and some even touched the desk.

The teacher waited patiently for a response. She continued to rub his back in slow, circular motions and he lied his head on the desk. She frowned. He was committed to his work, that she knew well. He had an A in her class and was almost never absent. She recalled a few times when he had a cold during school and he refused to go home, despite his coughing and sneezing. He really wanted to exempt, and quite frankly, he earned it.

"Do you want to go to the nurse for a while? Sleep for couple periods and come back when you're feeling better?" she asked, urging him to say yes and rest. "You don't have to go home if you don't want to."

Len swallowed again. He feared he would throw up in class if he stayed all day, but he definitely couldn't afford to go home early. Eventually he convinced himself to go lie down in the nurse's office and he raised his head up. The teacher looked at him worriedly. His face was ghostly pale, his cheeks the only bit of color anywhere. They were flushed red. She put her hand on his forehead. He was burning up…

Len started to stand up, leaning heavily on the desk to help push his body into motion. He moved slowly and carefully, as if he would collapse if he moved too quickly. The teacher put her hand on his back again to help support him as he moved.

"Do you need help getting to the nurse?" she asked, prepared to offer him help if he said yes. She trusted her class to be alone while she was gone. The office was the room directly across the hall from her's. It would only be a few seconds.

Len shook his head and mumbled an answer. "I got it…" He walked past her, his motions still extremely slow and somewhat staggered as he had to regain his balance every few steps. He walked with his left hand pressed firmly to his abdomen, trying to cradle his stomach so walking wouldn't hurt as bad. He looked almost like a zombie.

Once he had gotten to the office, he stood by the counter and waited for the secretary to notice him. He was too scared to speak. He might have been sick if he opened his mouth. It didn't take long before she finally saw him standing there, and she knew immediately that he wasn't feeling very good. His skin was so pale, especially in the bright office lighting. She looked at him sadly and stood, not wanting him to take another step without someone nearby. She wrapped her arm around his shoulder and helped him walk to the nurse's office. They passed by several other rooms, one for the teacher's lounge as well as the principal's office before reaching the nurse. The secretary knocked on it four times as soft as she could make it and still have the nurse hear it for Len's sake.

The nurse opened the door and smiled, wanting to greet whoever knocked politely. She saw the secretary and said hi, asking what she needed. Her gaze quickly shifted to Len and she frowned.

The secretary rubbed his shoulder. "He isn't feeling too good, Marcy. I think he should lie down for a while and rest up. He's looking pretty pale."

The nurse frowned and put her hand on his forehead. "You've got one heck of a fever there, kid." She slid her hand down to his cheek and left it there. "You wanna call your mom and have her pick you up?" Len shook his head. He refused to leave.

The nurse nodded and put her arm around his shoulder, taking place of the secretary. "Alright, come here then," she said, leading him into her office. Her office had some pretty bright lights, brighter than the main office even. Len squinted his eyes, the sudden change of lighting giving him a headache. The nurse led him over to a blue, leather couch in the corner. He sat down on the edge of it and put his head in his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. The nurse frowned and rubbed his back a little.

"What's the matter, hun?" she asked. She hated it when kids acted like this. Some kids were faking, trying to get out of school or just get attention. But some kids really did feel bad enough to the point where they couldn't even walk at a normal pace. She felt terrible when she watched them in her office. They looked so hurt.

Len took a deep breath, then let it out shakily and wavering. "My stomach really hurts…" he mumbled, feeling tears welling up in his eyes. He sniffed, wiping at them with his right hand. "I just don't feel good…" A few tears escaped and he couldn't help but cry. The nurse shushed him and tried to get him to calm down. He had reached his breaking point. Eventually he composed himself enough and was able to stop crying. The nurse let him lie down for a while and gave him a hot water bottle to hold on his stomach to help with the pain. He fell asleep after about ten minutes, dead tired at that point. He slept through lunch, though he didn't mind. Food would have only made the nausea worse.

It was the end of sixth period by the time he woke up, having missed all but one class at that point. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and tried to stretch out, but his stomach hurt too much to stretch his legs. The nurse watched him as he lied there tiredly.

"Feeling any better?" she asked. He looked up at her, forgetting she was in the room until she spoke. He shrugged. No. He didn't. If anything he was a more groggy version of first period.

The nurse offered him a water bottle, unopened. He stared at it, not really wanting to take it. Water sounded nice in his mind, but his stomach gurgled uncomfortably and he knew he wouldn't be able to hold it down. He slowly shook his head.

"You're gonna get dehydrated if you don't drink something, sweetheart," she argued. "You've got a pretty high fever, you should be drinking as much as possible. Even if you throw it up, your body is going to have absorbed some of it before it comes back up. It's better than nothing." Len stared at it for a few more seconds before gingerly taking a few sips, nursing it. His stomach didn't immediately reject it, and he was thankful for that.

The nurse glanced at the clock, checking to see how much time of school was left. "You've still got one more period left. You feeling okay to go back?" Len stared at the floor. Last period was band. He plays a reed instrument. He wasn't going to make it.

He slowly nodded and started to stand up. The nurse knew he was in absolutely no condition to do anything and needed to get right on home to his bed to sleep for at least another two hours. But if he didn't want to go home, she didn't have the right to make him. She sighed…

He was going to have a bad time.


	5. Len Threw Up

Len took the rest of sixth period getting his stuff and walking to the band room. He got to the door just as the bell rang and the choir kids left the room. Len was in the choir, but he was asleep when class had started. He knew Mrs. Abner would be mad at him for missing. The concert was tomorrow. Len pressed his back against the wall and groaned. How could he have forgotten? The concert was _tomorrow._ He absolutely needed to go. He played an oboe solo as well as first part in sectionals. He frowned as he thought of missing that. There's no way he would let that happen.

Once all the choir kids had left, some band kids began filtering in, grabbing their instruments from the large closet on the right wall of the room. Len remained leaning against the wall. Kaito noticed him standing there, curious as to why he didn't just walk in. He put his hand on his shoulder, making Len look at him. Kaito immediately noticed his pale skin and the beads of sweat around his forehead. He became worried.

"Hey…" he said, getting a better look at Len as he spoke. "You alright?" He didn't know what else to say. He wasn't very good at comforting people. He just knew how to make them laugh.

Len nodded, closing his eyes. He never once spoke or even opened his mouth. They both walked in and got out their instruments. Len grabbed both his clarinet and his oboe, as he needed both for sectionals and full ensemble. Kaito put together his saxophone slowly, watching Len closely as he got ready for band. Len put his clarinet reed in his mouth, allowing the double reed to soak in a cup of water for a while.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Kaito had leaned in closer to Len between the stands. Len paused, then took his reed out of his mouth and shook his head. Kaito asked him what was wrong. Len decided to tell him what was wrong and parted his lips slowly, making sure that the stomach acid would stay where it belonged.

"I feel really sick today…." he whispered, his voice wavering and nearly inaudible. "I feel like I'm gonna puke…" Kaito furrowed his brows in concern, feeling sorry for his friend.

"Why don't you go home?" he asked, hoping he would just leave early.

Len swallowed and turned away from him as Mrs. Abner stepped onto the podium, signalling that the band should be ready to start playing. Len put his reed on his clarinet and sat up on the edge of his chair.

"I can't…."

"Alrighty kiddos!" Mrs. Abner said cheerfully. Len stared at her worriedly. She was in a happy mood, but he knew that would change instantly if she saw him. She wasn't one to take matters lightly. She reminded him a lot of a grandma, actually. She could laugh with the class and be exciting and funny, but the moment someone misbehaved, it was like a slap to the wrist. Her tone became sharp and her words harsh. She didn't take shit from anybody. "Play a few notes to warm up and get the air flowing through your instruments." She stepped off the podium and made eye contact with Len just as the band started going through scales and long tones. The moment their eyes locked, Len knew he was screwed. She walked over to him and leaned down close to him, whispering to keep their conversation private. Len could feel the tears welling up in his eyes before she even spoke. He knew he was in trouble. He couldn't handle the stress of missing class and being sick and in pain on top of it. He wanted to cry.

"Len, why weren't you in class today?" Mrs. Abner asked, her voice deep and stern. Len swallowed and opened his mouth to speak.

"I…" He couldn't utter a whole sentence. He closed his mouth before his body forced the tears to start. He swallowed hard. Tears streaked down his cheeks despite his strong efforts to keep them in. Mrs. Abner looked at him curiously, wondering why he was crying. He couldn't keep it in anymore and put his head on his knees, sobbing. Kaito stopped playing after noticing his friend. He frowned. He really felt bad for him now.

It didn't take long before the whole band was silent aside from him. Everyone was staring at him. Most confused, others silently laughing. Mrs. Abner spared him the embarrassment and led him out of the room into her small office. Mr. Burns, the junior high band director who stayed during high school band and choir to help Mrs. Abner, took over for her while she was gone and began conducting the first piece.

Len had quieted down significantly since he left the band room, only slight sniffs and a few stray tears here and there. Mrs. Abner closed her door and turned to him.

"What's the matter?" she asked, worried now. She hadn't expected him to start crying.

Len sniffed again, feeling more tears building up. "I don't feel good…" he answered for the third time that day. "My stomach is upset, I have a headache, and I just wanna go home." He burst into tears again, turning away from her. He didn't like people watching him cry. Mrs. Abner put her hand on his shoulder.

"Let's go down to the office," she said. "You can call your parents and have them pick you up." She frowned. "I'm sorry you're not feeling well." She couldn't be mad at him for missing her class for being sick. Sure, she was upset that he wasn't there. But she couldn't punish him for it. He didn't really do it on purpose.

Len shook his head at her, sniffing and wiping away the tears from his eyes. "I can't go home early…" He looked at her again. His eyes were red from crying, puffy and bloodshot as well. On the bright side, a small bit of color had returned to his face. He was no longer ghostly pale, he was actually a few shades lighter than his normal skin tone.

Mrs. Abner didn't bother to ask why he didn't want to leave. She wouldn't have it. She looked at him sternly, making direct eye contact. "Len, if you're _really_ not feeling well, you need to go home. If you miss my class because you're sick and stay for another, you were well enough to go to the one you missed. You know my rules," she said. Len averted her gaze, nodding. Mrs. Abner told them that they were not allowed to miss her class for any reason. There would be some sort of punishment, such as putting all the stands away or staying after to vacuum. The only exception is that you were sick. But if you don't go home, then you still get in trouble. She says that you're not going to "skip class" by being sick, then go to another class. If you're too sick to go to one class, you're too sick to go to the rest. That was her rule. And Len frowned when he knew he had to follow it.

"I'll stay after to put away stands, Mrs. Abner…" he said, his voice quiet and meek. Mrs. Abner gave him a look.

"No," she said. He looked up at her sadly.

"Mrs. Abner, I can't go home early," he pleaded, tears welling up in his eyes yet again. He didn't want to cry, but he didn't come to school for this long just to be sent home right before the end. "I'm out of notes." Sure, it was a lie, but he needed to stay. He was a borderline B in

Geometry and he absolutely could not do proofs to save his life-which were the majority of the exam in that class. His parents would _kill_ him if he got a C, possibly even a low B. He's been a straight A student throughout high school. He could not risk that reputation being lost.

Mrs. Abner gave him a look. Len bit his lip and tried as hard as he possibly could to keep a single tear from slipping down. Mrs. Abner sighed and sat down at her desk. She stared at him for a while, not saying anything. She was trying to decide what to do with him. She was aware of his attendance. There was no way he'd be out of notes. Everyone knew he was almost never absent. He almost prided himself on it. He only missed one day the entirety of school last year. Mrs. Abner sighed. She was sure he wanted to keep that attendance record as well.

"Alright," she finally said. Len looked at her, confused. Mrs. Abner sighed again and stood up. "I will let you stay here." Len smiled at her, blinking away his tears. "I really don't want to make you put the stands away as you are though, so you can do that tomorrow after you've gone home and rested." Len nodded, eager to get back into the band room. Mrs. Abner frowned and ruffled his hair.

"You worry me, Kiddo," she said. She let her hand rest on his forehead. She felt the heat radiating off of his skin. He surely had a fever of at least 101. She estimated 102 was more accurate though. Len looked up at her with sad eyes and backed away a little, signalling to her that she should move her hand. Mrs. Abner frowned as she realized he must be aware of his high fever to be ashamed of her feeling his forehead.

"Go on back to class," she said, regretting it as she watched him walk away. She followed closely after him, making sure he was alright.

Band for Len went as follows: Excruciating headache followed by ears popping, nausea every time a trumpet player opened the valve to allow the saliva that gathered in their instrument to drip out onto the floor, nausea every time he had to put his reed in his mouth, and accidentally belching into his instrument every now and again. Not to mention, he needed to use the restroom desperately by the end of it. It was a long and painful half an hour in full ensemble. Small ensembles hadn't even begun yet. Len dreaded having to get up and lead the flutes and clarinets in their prepared piece.

Mrs. Abner gave them twenty minutes to practice and to pick a room that was currently vacant for privacy and quiet. Flutes and Clarinets usually either went to the woodshop room or the weight room. Woodshop room today.

The small group of instrumentalists gathered up their things and went to the woodshop room. Len happened to be the slowest that day. He walked painfully, as his stomach only hurt worse as the day went on and he could not wrap his arms around it since he was carrying his stand and oboe.

Once they got to the woodshop room, everyone looked to Len to start the piece. Everyone immediately noticed that something was not alright, but nobody mentioned it yet. He just got a lot of sad looks.

"Let's start at E," he said, trying to speak up so everyone could hear him. "We need to work on these sixteenth notes. Third clarinet, play out. Second flute, watch your tempo." He swallowed down more nausea and waited a few moments before deciding he was okay to start playing. Len put his oboe up to his mouth and started counting off, and others copied his movements. They all took a breath and started playing, the flutes still slowing down even though he told them not to. Len tried to tap his foot to the proper tempo, but his stomach started to burn. He felt the acid slowly creeping up his esophagus, splashing around and making the nausea that much worse. He had to stop.

Len pulled his oboe away from his mouth and stood perfectly still, his eyes focused on the ground to keep from looking at anyone. Soon people stopped playing collectively, wondering why he hadn't cut them off and if they had played something wrong. Second flutes immediately felt guilty for slowing down again, but once they looked at Len, they saw something else was going on.

Len stood there for a few seconds, unmoving. He felt his stomach gurgle. He was going to throw up. Teto, the second clarinet player, stepped forward. "Are you okay?" she asked. Everyone became worried when he didn't respond and put his hand over his mouth instead. He slowly bent down to set his instrument on the ground, knowing how delicate and expensive the reeds were and not wanting to damage his. He stood back up, but he could only go up into a hunched over position. He wrapped his arm around his stomach, holding it tightly. He couldn't make it…

Len ran over to the nearest trash can and kneeled down in front of it, forcing everything in his stomach into it. He coughed and sputtered, gagging at the wretched taste. He heaved several times before his body gave him a break, allowing some deep breaths until the next set of heaving. People gasped and some looked away, plugging their ears. Miku watched him with sad and shocked eyes. She hadn't expected _this_ …

Miku set her flute down on the ground walked over to him. She pulled his hair out of his face, ignoring the sweat and tears covering his bangs. She slowly rubbed his back, trying to help him pass whatever was giving him such grief. Once he was done heaving, he leaned back away from the trash can, breathing heavily. Miku hugged him, knowing her best friend felt terrible. Len couldn't help but cry. He was so stressed out and felt awful...He just couldn't deal with it. He turned around and hugged her, sobbing. Miku shushed him and patted his back. She hated it when her friends were upset. She always did her best to cheer them up.

Mrs. Abner had come in to check on their progress, but froze in the doorway when she saw the scene in front of her. Teto noticed her and opted to tell her what happened so that an authority figure would know, since that's what students were taught to do, after all.

"Len threw up," she said, making unblinking, direct eye contact with Mrs. Abner. Mrs. Abner looked at Len and sighed sadly. She knelt down beside him and took him into her arms, helping him stand up. She turned to Miku.

"Is there a mess?" she asked. Miku shook her head quickly and pointed to the trash can. Mrs. Abner glanced at it, then nodded to her. She would tell the janitor to take the trash out in this room asap. She told the group that Miku was in charge and to keep practicing as she led Len out into the hallway. She led him into the boy's bathroom, which was luckily empty, and grabbed a few paper towels, wetting them down in the sink. Len was still sniffling while she did this. Mrs. Abner began patting his forehead and cheeks with the paper towels, then wiped his mouth. She took one dry one and gently swept over his entire face. She looked him sternly in the eye after she threw them away.

"You are going home," she said. Len bit his lip. "I know you walk to school and that is not happening. I don't care who takes you home, I'll do it myself if I have to, but you are not walking home." Len looked at the ground and nodded. Mrs. Abner sighed and looked at her watch. 2:15. "There's about ten minutes of class left," she said. "I will let you hang out in here for now, but you need to call your parents and have them pick you up." Len nodded, looking up at her sadly. "Do you hear me?" Len nodded again, knowing he would at least be staying all day. He was supposed to be proud of himself for actually doing it, but right then, he was way too sick to care.

"Can I have my friend drive me home?" he asked. He spoke again before Mrs. Abner had a chance. "My dad is at work and my mom has class." Mrs. Abner contemplated her answer.

"Who do you want to drive you?" she asked.

"Kaito," Len answered confidently. They hadn't discussed it, but he knew Kaito would be willing to do it. Mrs. Abner agreed, knowing Kaito was a trustworthy student. She said she would tell him to come to her office and to put his instrument away. Len nodded. She called the janitor, then left to talk to Kaito and check on the other students.


	6. Can I Make Some Tea Real Quick?

Len waited for a couple of minutes in the bathroom after she left, then the door opened again. Sure enough, Kaito was standing there. He looked worried once he saw Len alone in the bathroom. He walked in and closed the door behind him.

"What's up?" he asked. Len frowned and opened his mouth to speak, but was embarrassed to ask. He hesitated, a look of sadness on his face. Kaito frowned.

"You're worrying me, Buddy," he said, hugging Len. "What's wrong?" Len hugged Kaito back, their height difference not bothering him at that moment.

"C-can you drive me home today?" he asked. He felt like crying again, but tears weren't forming in his eyes. Maybe he had finally gotten over it?

"Sure man," Kaito answered. He pat his back a few times before pulling away and ruffling his hair. Len smiled and sniffed, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. He was glad it was over quick. "Should we get your sister too?" Len stopped. He didn't necessarily want his sister to see him like this...He still thought she was mad at him. Len shook his head, telling Kaito he would just text her and tell her where he was. Kaito nodded.

Afternoon announcements came on and Kaito opened the door. He figured he should go get Len's stuff early, since he didn't know his combination (Len would never give it out, even to Kaito) and Len would walk pretty slowly. And Kaito was indeed right. It took until the bell for Len to finish getting his stuff out of his locker, then after that they had to walk to Kaito's car.

At first, Kaito was afraid he might throw up in his car, but he realized his house was only just down the block and shrugged it off. He wouldn't get carsick that fast. Len hopped in front, then opened the window. Kaito frowned. It wasn't _car_ sickness that would be the factor here…

Kaito jumped into the driver's seat and quickly sped off before the busses could start leaving, which would block their quick exit. He made it just as they were starting up. He breathed out a breath he didn't know he was holding in. Len seemed to be doing okay for the duration of the ride. He held his stomach, but he didn't seem to be very nauseous.

It took one minute tops to drive to his house. Kaito sort of envied his closeness to the school, then realized it was a ten minute walk there and back every day. He shrugged and helped Len out of the car and into the house. He noticed a car in the driveway and knew someone had to be home. A parent, specifically. The twins couldn't drive.

Kaito made sure Len got into the house okay, then decided to help him out by making some tea that he always drank when he had an upset stomach. Len walked into the bathroom while Kaito went into the kitchen. Len's mother was there, stirring milk in a saucepan on the stove. She looked behind her after hearing footsteps. She smiled at Kaito, then turned back to the stove and turned off the skillet.

"Oh hi Kaito," she said cheerfully. She poured the milk carefully into a thermos and added two teaspoons of hot chocolate mix then stirred it up. "I'm sorry, but you can't stay and play video games with Len today. I have a lot of work to do."

"Oh no, I'm just dropping off Len," Kaito said. Len's mom smiled at him.

"Well isn't that sweet of you?" she said. She put the lid on the thermos and shook it up just a little to get it frothy.

"Nah, it's nothing," he said, smiling back at her. He pointed to the cabinet to the right of the fridge, above the silverware drawer. "Can I make some tea real quick?" She looked up at the cabinet and shrugged.

"Sure, I don't mind, Sweetie," she said. "Make whatever you like." She smiled again and sat down at the kitchen table, pulling papers out of a folder that was sitting on it. Kaito grabbed the box of green tea as she began scanning them, sipping her hot chocolate.

Kaito found a small piece of ginger in the fridge next to the cheese. He pulled it out and grated a few pieces of it off. He opened a green tea bag and put the shavings into it, then tied it back together with the string. He stuck a mug of hot water in the microwave for two minutes and proceeded to get the rest of his ingredients as he waited; honey and peppermint.

Len's mom looked back at him and watched him as he prepared the tea. "Is there any reason you chose to make such an unusual tea today as opposed to just regular green tea?" She had never seen anyone open the bag and add things to it before.

Kaito looked back at her, since the microwave was still going. "It's a special tea I always make for whenever I have an upset stomach," he answered. Len's mom furrowed her brows.

"Are you not feeling well, hun?" she asked. "I can give you a tums if you need it." Kaito half smiled at her, but shook his head.

"It's not for me," he said, frowning. "Len got sick in school today during band. I drove him home today so that he didn't have to walk." He paused, then added, "I'm staying for a couple minutes to make him some tea. I think it'll help." Len's mom looked at him worriedly.

"What happened?" she asked. Kaito sighed, then turned around as the microwave beeped, signalling that the water was ready. Kaito pulled it out, careful not to burn himself on the hot handle, then allowed the bag to soak into the water for a few minutes. He turned back to the concerned mother and explained what happened while the bag floated in the hot water, its contents soaking in and turning the water a deep orangish color.

"I guess he wasn't feeling too good this morning, so he went to the nurse and laid down for a while," he explained. "Then he came back for band and I guess...he threw up during sectionals. I wasn't with him when it happened, but I was told by the band teacher that he wasn't well enough to walk home by himself." He frowned, looking at the door to the bathroom. "He didn't look too good when I saw him though. He was _super_ pale." Len's mom frowned.

"Thank you for taking him home," she said. Kaito nodded and took the tea bag out of the water. He stirred in some honey and dropped a peppermint in it, allowing it to float in the water and melt a little. It was an interesting taste, but it was sweet nonetheless and it really soothed an upset stomach. All the natural anti-nauseants in one cup. Kaito stuck it back in the microwave to keep it warm and allow the peppermint to dissolve all the way.

Len stepped out of the bathroom, trying his best to maintain good posture. He was surprised to see his mom standing there. Normally she had class on Mondays. Kaito took the mug out of the microwave and handed it to Len, telling him to be careful since it was very hot. Len nodded and looked at it curiously.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Tea," Kaito answered simply. "It'll make you feel better." Len nodded again and set it on the table, allowing it to cool before taking a sip.

Len's mom looked at him worriedly. Len frowned when he saw the concern on her face. He knew she wouldn't be happy to find out that he went to school as sick as he was.

"Hey, Baby," she said. "Are you okay? I heard you were sick." She frowned and hugged him.

"Yeah, my stomach was hurting earlier today…" He hugged her back loosely. He just wanted to lay down at that point.

"Why didn't you call me, hun?" she asked. "I would have come and gotten you." Len bit his lip and held his breath. He didn't want to tell her the real reason why. She'd kill him.

"I thought I was gonna be okay…" he answered softly. His mom pulled away and kissed him on the forehead. She left her lips there for a few seconds after she noticed how hot he felt. She felt bad for rushing him to school that morning. He probably slept in because he wasn't feeling well…

She pulled away and went over to the cabinet. "Go lay down on the couch, Sweetheart. I'll get you some medicine. I have to go to class really soon, but Daddy's going to be home in an hour, okay? Rin should be here soon too, tell her I said to keep an eye on you." Len nodded and grabbed the mug off the table and sat down on the couch. Kaito sat down next to him and gave him a hug before he left.

"I hope you feel better soon," he said, patting his back a little. Len mumbled a thanks and tiredly rubbed his eye. Kaito smiled at him and ruffled his hair. Len half smiled at him, thankful his friend was there for him. He took a sip of the tea Kaito made for him, letting it pool in him and warm his belly. He sighed at the feeling. Warm was much better than cold. That water really only made things worse…

Len's mom gave him some pepto bismol and a fever reducer after checking his temperature. He had a fever of 101.8. His mom became more worried than she already was and contemplated taking him to the doctor in the morning, but decided to wait it out a day and let the medicine work for a while before doing anything drastic.

She leaned over him after he had laid down and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "I'll be back later tonight, alright Sweetheart? I love you." Len said I love you back and then she left for class.

Rin walked down the driveway just as her car pulled out. Her mom beeped the car horn at her and rolled down the window. The horn startled Rin, making her jump, but she recovered quickly and walked over to the window to see what her mom needed.

"What's up?" she asked, leaning her elbows on the car door. Her mom spoke up loudly to make sure she was heard as clearly as possible. It wasn't quite yelling, but it certainly wasn't an "inside voice".

"You brother is sick, so I need you to keep an eye on him until Dad gets back, okay?" she instructed. Rin widened her eyes. She had completely forgotten to tell her…"There's some medicine in the cabinet, I want you to give him some pepto bismol whenever he says he's feeling nauseous and just check on him every so often to make sure he's doing alright, okay?" Rin nodded. She felt absolutely terrible. He had gone to school feeling like that. Like utter shit. She was going to kick herself for letting that happen.

"Okay, I have to go. Love you! Don't forget to check on him!" Rin nodded and pulled away from the window, walking backwards away from the car to avoid the wheels as her mom backed out. Rin quickly ran into the house to check on her baby brother.


	7. Daddy?

Rin threw her bag on the stair railing as she came inside, making sure to leave her shoes on the porch. She ran upstairs to their room, but Len wasn't in there. She was confused. Where was he? She walked into their parent's room, but it was empty too….What?

Rin called out his name as she walked back downstairs. Where was he at? She heard a low "Yeah?" coming from the living room. She breathed a sigh of relief and redirected her path to the living room. Sure enough, he was there, lying on the couch. He looked up at her curiously.

"What is is?" he asked. Rin took a good look at him before answering. She noted how pale he was, the sweat on his forehead, and the way he had his arm resting on his stomach as he lied there. She frowned and sat down beside him and began playing with his hair. Len closed his eyes and let her. It felt good when people played with his hair.

Rin sighed and combed her fingers through his loose bangs. "I'm sorry, Len…" Len mumbled a why, his voice so quiet it almost missed Rin's ears. She mumbled a response. "Because I let this happen to you…" Len opened his eyes and looked at her. He sat up, giving her a look.

"You didn't do any of this," he said. "I chose to go to school today. It was my fault for not staying home when I should have." He hugged her. "You didn't do anything wrong." Rin frowned when she felt his sticky, warm forehead against her cheek. She hugged him back just as tight. He worried her a lot. He never took care of himself like he needed to. Sure, he ate healthy and exercised. He needed to do that for sports. But he never rested like he should, preferring to stay up all night finishing homework. And he certainly cared more about attendance than sneezing all over his sleeve in class or puking in the bathrooms during school.

"Please don't go to school tomorrow," Rin begged. Len sighed and closed his eyes.

"I honestly feel like I'm dead right now, so school is out of the question," he answered. Rin sadly smiled at him and squeezed him tight. Len gave her a small squeeze back.

"Do you need anything?" Rin asked. Len yawned and pulled out of the hug, stretching.

"Can you bring me a hot bottle of water?" he asked. Rin nodded, saying sure. She heated up a glass jar of water in the microwave and screwed the lid on it when it was ready. She felt the immense heat of the glass and decided to wrap a rag around it to prevent burning herself or Len. Len looked at the jar curiously, but didn't object to the strange presentation. A warm thing to hold on his belly was all he needed, and that qualified. He laid down on the couch and curled his body around the jar, feeling its warmth sink into his skin pleasantly. He sighed in relief, not having felt that good in a while. Rin rubbed his back a little and he laid there, then decided to lay down next to him. Len didn't mind at all. More warmth for him. Only…

Len opened his eyes and frowned. "Hey Rin?" he mumbled. Rin mumbled a "Hm?" back in response. He felt his stomach gurgle underneath the jar, and uncomfortable feeling in his intestines. He grunted at the pain it brought with it. Rin sat up, worried. "Are you okay?" she asked. He breathed out shakily, but nodded.

"Can you…" he paused, not sure of what he wanted to ask of her. "Move? Like...In front of me? Or something?" Rin looked at him, confused. "What? Why?" Len was afraid she'd ask that…

"I…" he started. He was always embarrassed to explain things like that. He frowned and looked at the floor. "I kinda have to use the restroom again…" Rin nodded, understanding what he really meant. She was kind of glad he told her, actually. It would not have been fun to be behind him. Rin shifted over so that her legs were dangling off the edge of the couch and she was sitting next to his head. She pulled him into her lap so that she was cradling him almost. He didn't mind it. He rather enjoyed being cuddled like this. He relaxed in her arms, not very content when his body expelled the gas that was slowly collecting in his intestines, but his sister knew he couldn't help it and didn't say anything about it or the odor.

Soon enough, Len fell asleep and Rin needed to do her homework, so she quietly set him down on the couch and snuck upstairs to write her paper for English. She was really behind on it, and she figured he would be okay without her for an hour or so if he was asleep. She cracked her knuckles and began to work.

An hour later, Rin took a break and went downstairs to get a glass of water and check on Len. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that he was still sleeping and quietly filled up a cup with water and went back upstairs. She said hi to their dad who had gotten home mere minutes before she went downstairs. She gave him a quick hug, then ducked back into her room. Their dad walked into the kitchen, hungry for a snack before dinner to tide him over. He pulled out an apple, since it was a simple snack and required minimum effort to make (mostly because all he had to do was pick it up). He took a bite, then glanced into the living room. He saw Len lying on the couch. Why was he asleep this late in the afternoon? He wasn't one for naps. His dad shrugged it off and resumed eating his apple.

Len felt his stomach gurgle again, another shock wave of excruciating pain flowing through his abdomen and to the rest of his body. He held in a moan, putting his hand over his mouth to suppress it. The jar wasn't helping much at that point. He heard Rin come downstairs, but he was in too much pain to call out to her before she went back up. He could still hear someone in the kitchen. Maybe she came back downstairs?

Len couldn't help but moan in pain. He couldn't suppress it any longer, despite how embarrassed he was of it. On the bright side, maybe Rin would hear him then? Well, he was half right anyway. His dad paused, looking at his son awkwardly. Did he think he was alone right now? He couldn't exactly see his son's hands...He got curious and went over to investigate.

His dad leaned over the top of the couch to get a better look at him. His hands weren't in his pants, that was good he guessed... But why were his arms wrapped around his stomach? And what was he holding?

"Len?" he asked. Len opened his eyes slightly, then squeezed them shut, contorting his face up in pain. His dad became worried.

"Daddy?..."

Now he was extremely worried. Len never referred to him as that unless he was in trouble. "Yeah, it's Daddy," he answered. "What's wrong? What's the matter? Are you hurt?" Len started to cry. He felt so helpless.

"I don't feel good," he mumbled, sobbing. His dad picked him up and held him in his arms, rubbing his back slowly to try and calm him.

"What's the matter?" he asked. He had never seen him act like this before. Sure, he had been sick before and expressed it openly. His dad was used to the usual moan or grunt of pain. But he had never seen him burst into tears…

"My tummy _really really_ hurts…" Len answered, tears making it hard to speak. He could feel the slow motion of his dad's hand on his back. It was calming, but not enough to make the pain go away.

His dad frowned when he heard Len's answer. Stomach aches were the hardest to cure, mostly because there could be an infinite amount of things causing them. Heck, _stress_ causes an upset stomach. He pulled Len closer to his chest and rested his feverish head on his shoulder. He shushed him for a few minutes until he finally calmed down. He didn't like it when he cried. He didn't like seeing his kids in pain. Especially not someone as in control of his emotions as Len. He must really be hurting to cry like that.

He picked him up and carried him to his bedroom, allowing him to sleep in his bed. He set him down gently on the left side of the bed-his side-and rested his palm on the center of Len's forehead. He frowned at the feeling of heat on his hand. He brushed his hair back and kissed his cheek.

"Stay here while I go get you some medicine, alright?" Len sniffed and nodded. He curled up into a ball and pushed his hand into his belly, trying to relieve the pain. His dad quickly ran downstairs and grabbed some pepto bismol and the box of tums that they had. He wondered if he should grab a glass of water as well, but reached for a bottle of water he had partially drank out of from his office instead. He figured that he should get him something that was resealable.

He returned with the medicine and water faster than he had expected, but even that couldn't be fast enough. He knew that the medicine took time to work and that Len would be hurting just as much without it as he would with it until it took some effect. He assumed that Len would be taking this on an empty stomach though, so it should theoretically work faster. He frowned when he thought of this though. Len was probably hungry, but his stomach was forcing him not to eat. He would also bring him some food after his stomach had time to settle. His dad gave him a dose of pepto, then the tums pill. Len actually didn't mind the taste of either medicine. In fact, it was rather sweet. It was much better than artificial cherry flavor medicine of any kind. Then again though, that's the worst possible flavor.

Len took a small sip of water, not really wanting to make himself more nauseous than he already was. He put the cap back on the bottle and tossed it beside him close enough so that he could grab it if he wanted it. He wrapped his arms around his stomach, the pain having not subsided. His dad frowned at him and felt his forehead again.

"When did you first start feeling sick?" he asked. He didn't want his kid feeling any worse than he just saw him as and he would be sure of it that that didn't happen.

Len closed his eyes. Sometimes that helps with the pain. Why? He didn't know. It just did. A distraction maybe? "It was around this morning," he answered tiredly, not really thinking about his answer.

His dad nodded and sat down beside him on the bed. He rested his hand on Len's side. Len looked at him for a moment but his stomach gurgled again and he squeezed his eyes shut, whimpering. It hurt so bad…

His dad frowned at him, wondering how he could make him feel any better. He couldn't think of anything other than medicine and bedrest, which he had already had one of. He decided it would be best if he left him alone for a while to let him sleep. Hopefully he would feel better in the morning.

His dad bent over and kissed his son's forehead, telling him that he would let him sleep for now and to holler if he needed anything. Len opened his eyes and looked at him, frowning. He didn't want to be all by himself. He wasn't a very needy person and usually did fine on his own, but he didn't want to be alone right then.

"Can you tell Rin I want to talk to her?" Len mumbled. His dad half smiled at him. He knew that he just wanted to be with his sister. He nodded and stood up. He walked past the stairs and stuck his head into the twin's room. Rin turned from her laptop at the sound of the door being opened.

"What's up?" she asked. She closed the lid to her laptop.

Her dad frowned and spoke in a low, soft voice. "Your brother is pretty sick right now. Will you go keep him company for now? He wants you." Rin frowned and nodded. She had forgotten to check on him again…

"He's in my room," her dad said, then closed the door and walked downstairs to his office.


	8. Don't Be Sorry

Rin walked into her parent's room quickly, making sure to be quiet when she closed the door. She saw Len lying on the bed in a fetal position, shivering and upset. She walked around to the left side of it and sat down. Len opened his eyes to see who it was, then closed them again as if opening them made the pain worse.

"Scoot over," Rin commanded. Len complied and moved away from the edge more, giving Rin room to lie down next to him. She lied down beside him, getting very close. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her forehead on his. Len was mouth breathing and could almost taste her perfume, but it wasn't sickeningly strong, as it usually was. It was faint, and smelled of oranges.

Sweat rolled down the sides of his face and he swallowed, the dryness of his mouth from not closing it having become too much. Rin closed her eyes and breathed in slow, constant breaths through her nose, trying to steady his shaky breathing. Synchronize with him, you might say.

Rin opened her eyes, greeted with a blurry view of her brother's face. She sighed suddenly, making him flinch. She mumbled sorry and Len responded with a very quiet "It's okay…". Rin lied there with him for a while, not saying anything. It wasn't very often that he just needed her like this. He was a fairly solitary person. He never asked for something he could live without or do himself. He didn't like to bother people over trivial things. Rin didn't mind much at all when he asked for things, but despite knowing this, Len still tried to need as little as possible from her. For him to ask for her to be with him, she knew he absolutely needed her there. He wouldn't ask unless he did. And she didn't mind being there one bit.

Rin took in a deep breath through her nose, letting it out slowly. Her warm breath warmed Len's cheeks and neck, making him shudder when the warmth suddenly disappeared and her breath dissipated into the surrounding air. Rin looked at him again, though this time focusing on something not so close to her face so that it would be in focus. She looked at his abdomen, frowning when she saw his arms wrapped around it, protecting it. She began rubbing his back, sad that he was in so much pain. He twitched slightly, but otherwise remained unmoving from that position.

"Are you cold?" Rin asked, knowing that most people who had fevers tended to have conflicting ideas of what their body temperature actually was. Her forehead now burned from being in contact with his for so long, though her body had adjusted to the temperature and it no longer felt warm to her.

"A little…" Len mumbled. He was freezing from his shoulders down, aside from the parts where his sister's arms were warming him. He knew that answering yes would make her move, as she would try to get something to warm him up, but it would be worth it in the end. As he predicted, Rin pulled away from him to grab a blanket from their parent's closet, grabbing the softest and smoothest feeling blanket she could find. Len shuddered at the sudden loss of heat. He wanted her to hurry up. His stomach gurgled again and he bit his bottom lip. He let out a soft burp to relieve himself from the pain. It did little to help the burning ache that pained him so.

Rin returned with the blanket, throwing it around him before getting back on the bed. He burped again and moaned, curling up tighter. He could taste the acid in the back of his throat, a sick, burning feeling creeping up his esophagus. Rin decided it would be better to have him in her lap if he was belching again, rather than be face-to-face with him like before. She sat down in the middle of the bed and pulled him closer, letting him lean on her chest. He grunted occasionally as she moved him, the motion not doing him any good. Moving only seemed to make it hurt worse.

Rin pulled his head up to her chest, holding it there with her hand to bring him as close as possible. She rested her cheek on the top of his somewhat greasy hair, damp with sweat. She slowly rocked back and forth to try and lull him into drowsiness, hoping it would relax him. He belched again, a sick and gargled sound. He moaned softly and curled up tighter. Rin shushed him and and rubbed his arm, not quite able to reach his back.

"I feel sick…" he mumbled. He belched again, this one more relieving than the previous ones. It was a deeper sound and made him cough afterwards, then he groaned.

Rin reached around and pat his back as his stomach battled with him, hoping to relax him a little. He lied in her arms for a while, letting out the air as he needed. He belched softly again, then froze.

"Oh, my tummy…" he mumbled against his sister's chest. He moaned again and pressed into her. She took that as him wanting her to make it stop, to help him somehow. She frowned as she realized there was nothing she could do but hold him as he suffered. She slowly rocked back and forth, patting his back and keeping his head close to her chest. He could feel her heartbeat through her sweater. It was calming…

"Ohh…" he moaned again. "I think I'm gonna puke…" He belched loudly, groaning afterwards again. Rin became worried and sat up, holding him in front of her. Len slowly sat up too and hunched over a little, holding his stomach. Rin had noticed he had gotten significantly paler since she last saw him and furrowed her brows in concern. She got off the bed and led him into the bathroom, just in case he really did throw up.

Len knelt down in front of the toilet, feeling the nausea burning in his stomach. He belched again, leaning forward just in case. Rin could hear his stomach gurgling and cringed. She felt bad for him sitting there. She put her hand on his back and he leaned forward, opening his mouth. He burped a few more times, each one sounding more and more forced. He groaned and wrapped both arms around his stomach. Suddenly, he belched up a string of yellow stomach acid. It dripped down his chin and onto the toilet seat. He took a few deep breaths, but more of in a panicked way than a relaxed way. He heaved up more yellow sick, panting in between heaves. He belched nauseously, more vomit spewing out. Rin pulled his hair out of his face and rubbed his back, hoping it would help. Len heaved more and more up, belching as his stomach emptied itself. He felt like he was dying…

Their dad frowned as he heard the sound of someone retching from upstairs. His office was right underneath the bathroom upstairs, so he could hear faint heaving noises. He debated going up and checking on him, but he knew Rin was up there with him and assumed she could handle it. She had good nurturing skills. He trusted her to take care of him. He pulled out his phone and texted his wife, however.

 **Len threw up today. You mind picking up some ginger ale and crackers on your way back from class?**

He waited for a response, which took very little time to receive.

 **Yeah, can do. Poor baby :c**

He sighed and replied back that he would go check on him in a little while and not to worry. He couldn't help but worry himself, though. Must be a bad stomach bug.

Len finally finished expelling his stomach contents and knelt in front of the toilet, panting and trying to regain his breath. Rin rubbed his back slowly and rested her chin on his shoulder to offer her comfort. He appreciated having someone there with him. It was the little things people did that made all the difference.

"You feeling any better?" Rin asked. Len sniffed and reached for some toilet paper, pulling off the loose bit hanging off before wrapping some around his hand and wiping his mouth.

"A little…" he said, throwing the used wad of toilet paper into the toilet and flushing it.

Rin nodded and stood up, holding her hand out so that he could grab it and get up easier. His knees buckled as he stood. He'd used every bit of his remaining energy to get back into bed and lie down. Rin stroked the side of his face while looking at him sadly. He must be feeling awful right now...She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and hugged him. He buried his face in her neck and hugged her back.

"You wanna lay down with me again?" she asked, speaking softly.

"Please?..." Len needed her right now. She replied with "of course" and crawled into bed beside him, pulling the blanket over both of them. She faced him and wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to her. Len put his nose in her neck and hugged her back, pressing up against her as much as he could. Rin stroked the back of his head and whispered soothing words to him, hoping he would just fall asleep and be free of his pain for a short while. Len couldn't help but burp a few times. He felt bad for doing it, but he honestly tried to hold it in, and that only made his stomach hurt worse.

"I'm sorry…" Len mumbled into her sweater, feeling himself start to choke up again.

"Don't be sorry," Rin said, turning to kiss him on the head. She gave him a quick squeeze.


	9. C-can You Stay Here for a Little While?

Len's mom returned home bearing a case of fizzy drinks and a box of crackers in a plastic shopping bag. She gave her husband a quick kiss as she walked into his office. He told her that Len was upstairs in their room and she was going up to check on him in a flash.

She cautiously knocked on the door to her room. She heard Rin say come in, so she opened it slowly. The twins were in bed, watching TV. Len was lying down and Rin was sitting beside him, playing with his hair. Len had pulled his shirt up to his chest and had both hands resting on his stomach, though it was more of a relaxed position than a pained one. She sighed in relief.

Len looked at her curiously. "Hi Mom," he greeted her. His face was still sort of pale, but he was looking much better.

"Hey baby," she said, smiling. She sat down beside him and ruffled his hair. "How are you feeling?" Len sighed and closed his eyes for a second.

"I feel a lot better than I did before, but my stomach still really hurts…" He glanced down at his abdomen, then closed his eyes again. His mom frowned and put her hand on top of his.

"I got some ginger ale and crackers for you," she said. She held up the bag and box so he could see. He half smiled at her and said thanks.

"Let me know if you need anything, okay Baby?" she said, kissing him on the forehead. Len nodded and took the bag from her. He sat up slowly and stretched out, careful not to stretch too far. His mom set the case of ginger ale on the bed and left, quietly closing the door behind her, trusting Rin to take care of him. Rin pulled the box of crackers out of the bag and opened it, taking one out of the package and stuffing it in her mouth. Len jokingly gave her a look.

"Those are supposed to be for sick people," he said, giving her a fake angry look. Rin smiled at him and playfully rolled her eyes.

"You're right," she said. She grabbed a cracker and dangled it over his mouth. Len laughed and tried to take it from her, but she pulled it away every time he closed his mouth. Eventually Len got tired of it and grabbed her wrist with his hand and held it over his mouth where he could reach it. Rin laughed at him and let him eat it that time, figuring he'd been teased enough. Len chewed on the cracker slowly after its taste melted in his mouth a bit. He became nauseated and decided he should take it slow. He nibbled on the end of it for a while before he felt himself getting hot and dizzy. He took the partially eaten cracker out of his mouth and closed his eyes. Rin frowned at him and put her hand on his belly, moving his other hand off of it first. She rubbed in small little circles beneath his belly button, hoping to either distract him or relieve the pain, depending on what was the matter.

"Do you want some ginger ale?" she asked, making larger circles on his stomach now. She pushed down very slightly and tried to keep the amount of pressure she was using consistent. Len sighed and nodded, knowing that he should probably drink something before he dehydrated himself by throwing up again. Rin nodded and grabbed the box of ginger ale. She tore a hole in the top of it so that she could take out a can. She helped Len sit up so he could drink it better and handed him the ginger ale. He picked at the tab for a while, but his fingernails were too short to get a good grip on it.

"You want me to open it?" Rin offered. Len nodded and handed it back to her. She pulled the tab up with no problem with her long nails. She handed it back carefully and Len took a sip, holding it in his mouth for a while before swallowing it, just in case. He got a few sips down before his stomach started cramping painfully. He was able to bear it for a while without letting his sister know he was in a lot of pain, but after a few minutes, he couldn't help himself from setting the drink down and curling up in a ball to hold his stomach. Rin curled up next to him, wrapping her arms around him. She didn't like watching her baby brother when he was in pain. Lying this way, she could close her eyes and rest her cheek on the top of his head, just being there with him when she knew he needed her. She didn't need to look at him in a hug. She squeezed him tightly. Rin could still feel him shaking slightly in her embrace. Feel the heat radiating off of his head.

"Rin?" Len mumbled quietly. He could feel the tears in his eyes, the choking feeling when you need to cry. He tried to keep it down as best as he could.

"Yeah?" Rin replied, worried about him. He hadn't felt this bad since she could remember. He worried her a lot.

"Can you get Mom for me?" he asked. Rin's heart melted when she heard the tears in his voice. She could feel them welling up in her own eyes. They were twins. Sharing a soul, like Rin always said. When one was happy, so was the other. When one was sad, the other was too. It always upset Rin when her brother was upset, sick, or just flat out not happy. Watching him cry made her cry almost every time, and vice versa. His emotions connected with his sister's in a way that most people couldn't even understand. Twins aren't like regular siblings.

"Yeah, I can do that," she said, hugging him for a little bit longer, stalling having to leave him. She sniffed and tried not to cry too. "What should I tell her?" Len frowned when he heard Rin's sniffling. He didn't want her to cry.

"Just that I need her real quick…" he answered, though he instantly changed his mind after he said it. Rin nodded and mumbled okay, sitting up. She wiped the corners of her eyes with the palm of her hand to get rid of any tears that might have collected up. Len looked at her sadly as she started to get off the bed.

"Actually!" Len shouted, trying to get her attention. Rin stopped in her tracks and turned back to him curious as to why he stopped her. Len slowly sat up too, cringing as he felt his stomach gurgling painfully. He wrapped his arm around it and leaned his head against the headboard of the bed in exhaustion.

"C-can you stay here for a little while longer?" He sniffed. He didn't want his mom. He wanted her.

Rin smiled sadly at him and nodded, crawling back over to him. He smiled back and hugged her once she was close enough. Rin buried her nose in his neck and hugged him tighter than she probably should have. Len took in a shaky breath, letting it out in the same fashion. He was tired and wanted to sleep, but his stomach was killing him. His stomach groaned again and he felt the air rising in his throat, releasing it as a loud belch. He mumbled excuse me, feeling sorry for his sister, who was so close. Rin didn't particularly mind though. She was more glad that he was feeling better than she cared about having to breathe in stomach acid air.

"I think your stomach hurts so bad because you're bloated," Rin stated. She pulled away from the hug a little so that she could look at him. Len tried to muffle a burp by closing his mouth, but his stomach had other ideas. Rin laughed at him. "Also, that smells gross, what the heck have you been eating?" Len rolled his eyes at her.

"It's not what I've been eating, it's that I've thrown up twice and my mouth tastes like puke," he spat out. Rin sighed at him.

"I was only joking, calm down," she said softly, not trying to be mean like she accidentally was that morning. Len sighed back and nodded. He said nothing as he pulled away from her and laid down on the pillows. Rin massaged his belly and he lied there on the bed, paying more attention to the cartoons she turned on a while ago. Rin turned her head as she heard a knock at the door. She said come in to whoever was standing at the door. Their dad stepped in.

"Hi," he said, his gaze immediately laying to rest on his son. Rin mumbled hey back. Their dad made his way around the bed, then he crouched down next to Len. "Hey bud. Mom sent me up here to check your temperature, okay?" Len nodded tiredly, his eyes drooping. His dad nodded back and turned on the thermometer and stuck it under Len's tongue, telling him not to open his mouth until it beeped. Len became slightly worried. He still had a lot of air in his stomach that he had been silently letting out for the past minute or so. He was glad it was silent, but he still needed his mouth slightly open.

Thankfully, it beeped before he felt the urge to belch again and his dad took it out, turning it on its side so he could read it. He read it aloud. "102." He looked at Len worriedly. "I think we might schedule an appointment with the doctor tomorrow. Your fever is a little too high for me to be okay with it." Len nodded. Tomorrow would not be a good day for him.


	10. I Don't Like Cheese Anyway

Len's mom closed the car door after Len got inside and buckled his seatbelt. He breathed out a sigh and rested his head on the window. He was incredibly nauseated. If he closed his eyes for more than ten seconds, he was certain he would become disoriented and vomit.

His mom jumped into the passenger's seat and closed the door beside her. She watched Len worriedly as she buckled her seatbelt. He had almost thrown up when he woke up that morning. He spent twenty minutes dry heaving over the toilet until he couldn't take it anymore and pressed his back against the wall and cried. She hated to put him in the car after that, but it was an appointment they had to make. If they didn't leave then, they would miss it.

"You doing alright, hun?" she asked him. Len glanced up at her and nodded, then went back to staring out the window. He had to look out the window or he would get carsick. He had a very sensitive stomach. His mom debated rescheduling, but he would likely be just as sick the next day and no closer to having any treatment. "Just let me know if you need anything, alright?" Len nodded absentmindedly and continued to stare out the window.

Why did it have to be during a school day? He thought to himself. He was grateful that he didn't have to go through the pain of enduring school again, but he frowned when he realized yesterday was pointless if he was going to miss a day anyway. All his hard work to keep good attendance...wasted on something he couldn't control. He wanted to cry in frustration, but he had cried all too much in the past two day.

His dad started up the car and took one last look at Len before pulling out of the driveway. He was afraid he'd have to clean up a mess before they got there.

Len sighed as he stared out the window. He could feel his bloated stomach gurgling again and again. Why was there so much air in his stomach? He had barely eaten or drank anything recently. There was no reason for him to have to belch this much. He tried his best to keep it in, but it had built up too much every now and again and he'd have to burp loudly to relieve himself. Turn the radio on or something, Dad...Jeez…

He almost smiled when he saw that they pulled up to the doctor's office and happily unbuckled his seatbelt. Burping had helped quell his nausea, so he didn't get sick in the car. He actually started to feel a bit better.

His dad got out and opened Len's door before he had a chance to reach for the handle and grabbed his hand to help him out. Jeez, it's not like he's completely helpless. He let go of his dad's hand and took a few steps, stretching his arms. It felt good to walk around after being stuck in bed all day. He let out a few more burps and sighed. He couldn't wait until he didn't have to do that to feel good anymore. He froze when he noticed he still felt a lot of air in his stomach though. He belched continuously as his dad waited for his mom to get out of the car. They always walked in together.

Len furrowed his brows worriedly. He couldn't make himself stop...He closed his mouth, but it still pushed its way out through his esophagus.

"Shit…" he mumbled to himself. He was fully aware of the unspoken rule of silence in waiting rooms. Every single person in that room would be able to hear him. He tried his best to swallow it down and be as silent as possible, but he couldn't help but let out loud ones. He looked at his dad, who had his back to him. He hesitantly reached for his shirt sleeve, then recoiled back a little, wondering if he should get his attention or not, then ultimately reached out again and tugged. His dad turned around to see who had pulled his shirt, noticing it was Len.

"What's up, Buddy?" he asked, slightly hunching over to be more eye level with him. He became worried when he saw the look on his son's face. "What's wrong? Are you alright?" He put his hand on his shoulder, waiting for his answer. Len drew in a shaky breath and looked away. He closed his mouth to muffle a belch, this time effectively. His dad stood there, waiting for his response impatiently. "What's the matter?" Len glanced up at him, then stared back at the ground.

"Can I sit outside until I need to go in?" he asked, refusing to look at him. He belched loudly again, and his dad seemed unphased. It was the polite reaction, but Len knew he didn't want to be that close to his face when he burped.

"No, we need to go inside so you can go in when they call you," he answered calmly. "Why do you want to stay outside?" Len clenched his fist and swallowed down more air. He didn't want to tell him, he was embarrassed enough.

"Nothing…" he mumbled. His dad knew there was a reason, and he debated pushing for answer. He decided to try one more time.

"Len, why do you want to stay outside instead of waiting in the waiting room?" At this point, his mother had noticed the conversation and was curious about Len's hesitation to go inside as well. She stepped up behind her husband and put her hand on his back. Len glanced up at her and averted his gaze yet again.

"Len? What's wrong?" his mom asked worriedly. She wondered if he felt carsick. Len muffled another burp, but it was still noticeably loud. He sighed and looked up at them.

"I can't stop…" he said, feeling his face warm up in embarrassment. He was sure his cheeks were red. His mom furrowed her brows.

"Stop what? Honey, can you please just tell me what's wrong?" His mom was becoming slightly irritated. Len sighed again and tried to talk, but he belched after every other word.

"I can't….stop…" he paused to let out another obnoxiously loud belch. He reddened after he heard it. "Belching…" he muttered. His parents looked at each other, unsure of what to do. This had never happened to either of them or anyone they knew. They knew he was embarrassed to go inside and not be able to control himself, but they weren't sure what to do.

His mom gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Sweetheart, this is a doctor's office. People will just think you have an upset tummy, Babe. It's alright. Nobody's going to judge you." Len looked at her, unsure. His mom flashed him a quick smile to reassure him.

"Come on," she said, putting her arm around his shoulders. "We should hurry up and go in before they call us." They walked into the doctor's office quicker than Len would have liked. His dad went up to the attendant to check him in and give them their insurance while his mom led him over to the chairs so they could wait for their name to be called. Len saw all the people looking at him since they had just walked in. People always look to see who comes through the door, even if it has no effect on them whatsoever. Human curiosity. Len tried his hardest not to belch with all eyes on him.

His mom pointed to a couple of chairs next to a trash can. "Let's sit here," she said. She took him by the hand and led him over to the chair closest to the trash can. He gave her a look like she didn't trust him. She looked confused for a moment, then realized what the hate stare was for.

"Honey, I'd rather be safe than sorry," she said. Len sighed and sat down. His mom sat down next to him and rubbed his back. He quietly belched under his breath as they waited. He wasn't very nauseous. He actually felt a lot better. But he still couldn't make himself stop. He belched loudly a few times, which drew a few eyes on him (mostly old people who glared for him being so rude). He put his hand on his stomach to show them that he had a stomach ache. That small body language was all they needed to know that he was sick and couldn't help it. He was glad that his mom was right about that. He hiccuped, startling his mom who was busy playing Candy Crush on her phone. He groaned inwardly. Not hiccups too...He hiccuped again, burping soon after. His mom smiled at him sadly and he sighed.

A nurse poked her head through the door to the corridor that held all of the small rooms that belonged to the doctors. She read down the column of names on her clipboard and called out "Kagamine". Len's mom stood up and she smiled at them, gesturing for them to follow her through the door. Len stood up as well, but regretted it instantly when his intestines protested the sudden motion. His stomach gurgled painfully and he tried his best not to show it, but he did hunch over slightly and wrap his arm around his stomach. His mom looked at him worriedly.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Len looked up at her and nodded. They walked slowly for Len's sake. His dad told them he would just wait until they were done so the room wasn't too crowded. Len was thankful for that.

The nurse led them to a scale and a device to measure his height, he wasn't exactly sure of the name of it. She measured his height first, and he had grown half an inch since last time. The nurse smiled at him and told him he was about where he would stop growing, maybe another half inch to go. He was in too much pain to react. He belched again and clenched his fist.

"Alright, let's get your weight," she said. Len stepped onto the scale, waiting for her to tell him to step off. She froze for a second, staring at the numbers. She looked at his mom worriedly. She looked back just as worriedly.

"What's wrong?" she asked, afraid her son was seriously ill.

The nurse looked down at the chart again, then back up at Len's mom. "Well, the last time he was here, he weighed in at 104 pounds. Slightly lower than the average, but it was understandable since he did a lot of sports. But now he's down to 97…" Len looked confused. He lost weight? Why is that bad?

"What's wrong with being 97 pounds?" he asked. The nurse turned to look at him.

"You're eight pounds under the weight average," she said. "And based on what I've been told of your symptoms, it's because you're vomiting so much. I doubt you've eaten anything in the past two days either, have you? Please tell me you're at least staying hydrated…To lose 7 pounds in two days...That's very extreme." Len frowned when he realized that he hadn't really eaten anything at all. He sipped some ginger ale yesterday, but he never came close to finishing the can. And vomiting and diarrhea do cause fluid loss, and no doubt weight loss...He finally realized how big of a problem this was becoming.

The nurse looked at his mom. "Get him to drink something when he gets home, or else we might have to give him an IV to replenish the fluids he's lost recently," she said. She frowned at Len and gestured for him to step off the scale, leading him into the office that belonged to their family doctor. She pulled a small paper cup out of the cabinet and filled it up with water from the sink, giving it to him once it was full. Len took it hesitantly and sipped it slowly. He was going to vomit after this. The nurse took his blood pressure and then told them to wait there for a while and she would go get the doctor and tell them they're ready for her.

Len stared at the cup of water. He didn't want to drink it, but he knew that if he didn't, he could get dehydrated and pass out. He'd had that happen before at practice, the coach had to carry him down to the school nurse. It was quite embarrassing to wake up with someone sponging his forehead and having to ask them what happened. He didn't want to pass out again. But eh...he didn't want to throw up either.

"Len, please drink it," his mom instructed, her eyes filled with sadness. Len frowned and nodded, taking another sip. It felt like the water pooled in his belly, its icy feeling suddenly burning once it settled in his stomach. He became nauseated quickly and opted to put the cup down, but decided it would be for the better if he just finished it off. He took a swig and gulped it down uncomfortably, trying to ignore the swishing sounds in his intestines. Both of them could hear the gurgling. Len belched a few more times to help with the pain and decided to lie down on the paper covered bed, curling up in a ball. He began to shake, feeling both sweaty and cold at the same time. His stomach burned and froze at once. The feelings conflicted and he couldn't tell if he was hot or cold.

Their family doctor entered the room, not very surprised to find Len lying down in the position he was in. His mom smiled at her.

"Hello," their doctor said, smiling back. She sat down at her small desk and pulled up the ancient computer to check out his file. She was aware of the call, she was able to remember this case. Much different than the other casual checkups. But she couldn't quite remember specific details. She clicked her pen as she read through his file. That weight was concerning. Blood pressure not too good either…

She turned around and looked at him. "So you're here because you have an upset stomach, right?" Len looked at her and nodded, too tired to sit up. She nodded back, getting a good look at him.

"Have you had diarrhea or vomiting?" She stood and walked over to him, gently pulling his arms up so that she could have him lie flat on his back. Len didn't want to lie down all openly, it hurt to stretch out. He wanted to curl up in a ball and go to sleep. Sleep is the only place you can go when you're sick where the pain goes away for a while.

"He's thrown up a lot since he first got sick, and he spends a lot of time in the bathroom," his mom answered for him. The doctor nodded and snapped her gloves on. She gently pushed down on the lower right of his abdomen. He winced, feeling the pressure in his stomach increase.

"Any tenderness here?" Len nodded, biting his lip. The doctor moved on to the middle below his bellybutton. He winced again, letting out a small noise of pain. The doctor loosened her pressure and gently let her hands rest on his stomach. Len belched loudly, feeling the relief immediately. It felt like his stomach was lighter.

"I'd like for you to collect a stool sample for me," she said, nodding to him. Len raised his eyebrow.

"Um...Right now?" he asked warily.

"If you can, then the sooner the better," she said. "But I can print off some instructions for you to take home if you need them." Len stared at the floor for a while. He absolutely would not want to/not be able to do this.

Len belched again. The doctor looked at him curiously.

"Have you had excessive amounts of gas and belching as well?" she asked. Len hesitated.

"Belching, yeah…" he answered quietly. He'd never admit to anything else. "I've just been really nauseous and gotten sick a lot...That's really the main thing." The doctor nodded.

"Do you just want to stay bed all day?" she asked. Len nodded.

"That's the best idea I've heard yet," he said, smiling at his "joke". He couldn't force a laugh though.

The doctor stared at him for a while, thinking to herself. "Someone else came in yesterday complaining of similar symptoms," she said. Len furrowed his brows.

"Who?" he asked.

"He was a young teen like you," she said. "Lui Hibiki." Len frowned. Lui?

"Do you know him?" the doctor asked. Len nodded.

"Yeah," he said. "He's on the track team with me, he goes to my school." The doctor nodded.

"Well, he came in last week and his test results came back today," she said. "And if I'm right, I'd say you both probably have the same thing." Len looked at her worriedly.

"What is it?" he asked. She sat back down in her chair.

"There was a parasite in the ponds and creeks up where Lui had his hiking trip," she said, looking at Len's worried face. "A trip I assume you went on?" Len nodded. "That's what I thought. And you two must've been messing around in the water, because it seems you've both ingested the parasite." Len grew more worried. They had splashed each other quite a lot..."Giardiasis." Len looked at her, confused.

"What's Giardiasis?" he asked. He'd never heard of that before.

"It's essentially like food poisoning," she said. "You must've swallowed some of the water when you were up there on the hike. Swallowing the parasites can lead to infection, which sometimes, but not always causes symptoms like belching, upset stomach, nausea and vomiting, and diarrhea." Len frowned when he realized that none of this would have happened if he hadn't messed with the water.

"Am I gonna be okay? Do you need to do surgery or anything?" Len stared at the doctor worriedly. He was terrified of the thought of going under the knife. He couldn't imagine trusting someone to cut him open while he was asleep.

"No, you don't need to have any surgery," she said. "You will have to be put on antibiotics, however. And there is one thing that you must know." She realized that she was only worrying him more, but he needed to know.

"People who have giardiasis often have a long term gastrointestinal disorder of some sort," she said. Len's mom furrowed her brows in concern.

"What sort of disorder are we talking about?" she asked.

"Well, some people keep the symptoms they have when they get the disease, some people have IBS, and others have lactose intolerance," she explained. "But I can vouch for quite a few people who say their symptoms are much less intense after treatment and grow used to it over time to the point where it hardly bothers them anymore."

Len frowned. "You mean I'm going to be like this for the rest of my life?" He couldn't imagine living like this.

"No, you won't feel like this forever," she explained. "The symptoms you'll be experiencing long term are likely to be bloating and gas on occasion, usually when you consume dairy products. But I guarantee you it will not feel nearly as bad as it does now."

Len couldn't help but frown. He was glad to know what was wrong, but the thought of having to deal with this for the rest of his life was too much for him to handle. That pain...forever? He couldn't bare it.

"Are you okay?" the doctor asked. He'd grown considerably quiet after hearing the news. Len sighed and stared at the floor for a while.

"Is there anything I can do to help it?" he mumbled. The doctor sat down in her chair and thought for a moment.

"Well, you can try to avoid really fatty foods like hamburgers and other junk food, which you should be doing anyway since you're on the track team," she said, trying to get him to smile a little or cheer him up in the slightest. She wanted to show him his lifestyle wouldn't have to change much and that it wasn't as bad as he thought it was. "And you can't have milk or cheese."

"I don't like cheese anyway," he said. The doctor smiled.

"Then this is going to be easier than you thought," she said. He shrugged. "What is it about this situation that upsets you the most?" Len looked up at her and furrowed his brows.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"What makes you the most upset? Is it that you'll have to be careful about what you eat? That it's embarrassing?" she asked, offering suggestions to help make her point clear.

"It's that I'll have to feel this pain for the rest of my life…" he said, staring at the ground again.

"Once the antibiotics clear things up, I promise you that you won't be in as much pain as you are now," she said. "It's really bad now because the parasite is still inside you. Most of your symptoms will go away, I promise." Len nodded, not really believing her.

The doctor said she still needed a stool sample, so she printed out instructions to take home and then they left. Len sat down in the backseat of the car and sighed. He was not going to have a good day.


End file.
